# Andy Rinomhota

Andrew Farai Rinomhota (born 21 April 1997) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for EFL Championship club Cardiff City. Born in England, he plays for the Zimbabwe national team.

## Club career

Rinomhota was born in Leeds, West Yorkshire, to a Zimbabwean father and an English mother. He started his career in the youth team of AFC Portchester before he was promoted to the first team in the Wessex League due to an injury crisis. After impressing for the first team, scoring ten goals in 30 league games, manager Graham Rix contacted Reading to send a scout to watch Rinomhota in action, which subsequently resulted in a two-week trial. In April 2015, he signed for EFL Championship side Reading on an initial two-year contract with the option of a further twelve-month extension. He spent the majority of his first season with the club with under-18 and under-21 sides, moving up to the under-23 side in the 2016–17 season to play for the side in the EFL Trophy, amassing a total of thirty-nine appearances in all competitions. He was promoted to the first team in the summer of 2017 and joined the side on the pre-season tour of the Netherlands. In August 2017, he made his professional debut in the 2–0 EFL Cup win over Gillingham, playing the full ninety minutes. On 8 December 2017, Rinomhota signed a new contract with Reading until the summer of 2021. On 25 February 2019, Rinomhota signed a new three-year contract with Reading, lasting until the summer of 2022. Rinomhota scored his first goal for Reading against top of the table Norwich City on 10 April 2019 in the last minute of added time (90+7') in a 2–2 draw at Carrow Road. After an exceptional debut season, Rinomhota was awarded the 2018–19 player of the season.
On 24 June 2022, it was announced that Rinomhota would join Cardiff on a three-year deal from 1 July 2022.
Rinomhota joined Rotherham United on loan until the end of the season on transfer deadline day, 1 February 2024.

## International career

In December 2017, Zimbabwe explored the option of convincing Rinomhota to represent them at international level, which he is qualified to play for through his father. In May 2018, Rinomhota was named in Zimbabwe's provisional squad for the 2018 COSAFA Cup. However, Zimbabwe faced difficulties in getting Rinomhota into their squad, as Zimbabwean law required him to renounce his British citizenship in order to get a local passport. He eventually made his debut for Zimbabwe on 19 November 2023 in a 2026 World Cup qualifier against Nigeria played in Rwanda.

## Career statistics

    As of match played 2 March 2024
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition :
| Club | Season | League | League | League | Cup | Cup | League Cup | League Cup | Other | Other | Total | Total |
| Club | Season | Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Reading | 2015–16 | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 |
| Reading | 2016–17 | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Reading | 2017–18 | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 |
| Reading | 2018–19 | Championship | 26 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 28 | 1 |
| Reading | 2019–20 | Championship | 37 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 45 | 2 |
| Reading | 2020–21 | Championship | 42 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 43 | 1 |
| Reading | 2021–22 | Championship | 20 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 21 | 0 |
| Reading | Total | Total | 125 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 139 | 4 |
| Cardiff City | 2022–23 | Championship | 39 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 41 | 0 |
| Cardiff City | 2023–24 | Championship | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| Cardiff City | Total | Total | 42 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 48 | 0 |
| Rotherham United (loan) | 2023–24 | Championship | 6 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 6 | 0 |
| Career total | Career total | Career total | 173 | 3 | 10 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 193 | 4 |

### International

Appearances and goals by national team and year :
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
| Zimbabwe | 2023 | 1 | 0 |
| Zimbabwe | 2024 | 10 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 11 | 0 |